The Dow Jones Industrial Average is the bellwether of how the American economy is doing, at least in terms of corporate share value. The index is determined by looking at how the share price of 30 companies -- referred to as the "Dow 30" -- did during a particular trading session.

While Apple, which is the most valuable public traded company in the world, seems like it would have been a natural to join this group, it wasn't until the company split its stock 7-to-1 last year that it was first considered. The company would have had way too much weigh in the average, with even slight price swings producing a correspondingly large jump in the Dow. Because of the stock split and an...

There’s a long piece over at the Financial Times today about Jony Ive and Apple’s watch plans. The author, Nick Foulkes, is obviously not a techie, but he does know a thing or two about watches, and the article is worth a read if you have a horological bent.

The article does contain some interesting tech tidbits, too. For example, Foulkes tells us that “Ive explains how the molecules in Apple gold are closer together, making it twice as hard as standard gold.” This claim was greeted in the office by more than a little bemusement. Gold is a metal! Has Apple finally left a reality-based existence behind it?

Perhaps the company is not entirely crazy, though. In June 2014, Apple...

With last year's iPad mini 3 upgrade largely viewed as a disappointment, sporting the same processor and form factor as its predecessor, a new report says Apple may be looking to soon rectify that with a fourth-generation model featuring upgraded internal specifications.

For the purposes of Gatekeeper, Apple verifies the identity of the developer, but not their intent. It’s up to you to ensure that the applications you install and run on your Mac come from the people you think they came from, and we’ll show you how to do that.

The key words are, “it’s up to you” to not let your guard down and to always be aware of what you are downloading and installing. Apple is doing their part and it’s up to the user to do theirs.

Apple will replace AT&T in the Dow — an exclusive club of 30 stocks that also includes tech giants Microsoft, Intel, and Cisco as well as brand-name consumer firms Walmart, Coca-Cola, and Disney.

“As the largest corporation in the world and a leader in technology. Apple is the clear choice for the Dow Jones Industrial Average,” said David Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the index committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a statement.

Apple will enter the Dow at the close of trading on March 18.

As tha article says, this is mostly symbolic but, for a company on the edge of bankruptcy less than 20 years ago, it’s a remarkable journey.

As of Thursday, AppleCare has begun providing support for Beats Music customers as well as accepting Apple Pay for payment. Prior to this, support for Beats’ customers went through an alternate service. According to sources, AppleCare staff are now taking Apple Pay as a form of compensation.

Support for the Beats music products has been slowly integrated into Apple’s system since the company’s purchase of Beats Electronics and Beats Music for US$3 billion in 2014.

As for Apple Pay, the change is part of a new initiative to encourage businesses to accept Apple Pay and expand the locations where the iPhone and Apple Watch...

Java’s shady bundled adware is no longer a Windows exclusive, as Oracle has started sneaking the Ask.com toolbar into the Mac version.

Similar to the Windows version, Java for OS X now attempts to install the Ask toolbar during the setup process, and also tries to set Ask.com as the default browser homepage. ZDNet’s Ed Bott first reported on the adware, noting that Oracle added it to Mac installations sometime over the last month.

To avoid the adware entirely, users must hit “Cancel” when the “Install the Search App by Ask” prompt appears. This is counter-intuitive, because all other steps of the setup process require users to click “Next” to advance. In this case, clicking “Next” installs the toolbar, even when the “Set Ask.com as my browser homepage” box is unchecked.

The possibility of third-party accessories for Apple Watch is still something Apple hasn’t made official, but that isn’t stopping a slew of companies from announcing products before the Apple Watch ships next month. The latest is a band accessory called Reserve Strap that aims to combat any battery life issues with a strap that includes embedded batteries to charge the device while you wear it.

The possibility of such an accessory has been a source of conversation, especially after the recently introduced...

When Apple launches a rebranded Beats Music later this year, the streaming service may not have an ad-supported free tier, according to a new report, citing sources who allegedly spoke with Apple's Eddy Cue and Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine.

If you’re having issues with your iPhone 5 battery, then you’re in luck.

Apple has pushed back the expiration date of its iPhone 5 battery replacement program, which was originally scheduled to end on March 1, to provide owners of faulty equipment a full three years of component coverage.

While Apple did not formally announce the change, language on the program’s dedicated webpage was modified to reflect a new coverage period extending to three years after a device’s first retail sale. The updated page was first spotted by iPhone in Canada.

Prior to the change, iPhone 5 owners could swap out faulty batteries for “two years after the first retail...

With informed speculation suggesting that the price of the Apple Watch Edition will be somewhere in the $6-10,000 range, you might think that would easily make it the most expensive smartwatch on the market. But no: luxury watchmaker Hoptroff makes a mechanical gold smartwatch for £14,400 ($21,700)–and the platinum model works out to a cool $54,000.

Functionality may be limited, but it’s genius design. It syncs with your iPhone to access your calendar data, then one dial points to the time of your next appointment while another points to the first letter of the appointment title–for example, the name of the person you’re meeting. Delightfully clever, if perhaps questionable in usability.

Bloomberg today provided details on a secret Watch app development lab that allows select developers pre-launch access to the wearable device. According to people familiar with the process, companies such as Facebook, BMW and United have been sending developers to Cupertino's headquarters to work hands-on with Apple's smartwatch. Internet access is blocked in the conference rooms and developers invited to the labs are not allowed to bring in any outside materials. Even app source code must remain at Apple headquarters until the Watch is closer to launch.

There’s a lot of confidentiality,” said Stephen Gates, a vice president and creative director for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., which is building a watch application to unlock hotel-room doors. Apple featured Starwood’s application in September, when it first announced...

Component manufacturer Japan Display on Friday officially unveiled plans for a new $1.4 billion display plant in central Japan, with Apple reportedly investing in the facility to secure supplies of advanced LCD panels for its products.

A mass of 379 companies including Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft have filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court expressing their support for same-sex marriage, in advance of a landmark April hearing on the issue.

Jump to the page and watch the video. You’ll watch the process of taking down an existing ad, see a time lapse of the new piece being hung, and get a really nice tip on shooting a panorama. All of this was done using an iPhone 6 (of course!)

Continuing his evolution from behind-the-scenes design czar to company-fronting rock star, Apple's Jony Ive granted an interview to one of his hometown newspapers this week and revealed his reasons for joining Apple, touched on his friendship with Steve Jobs, and discussed the design of the Apple Watch.

Google recently flipped over the counter on Gmail’s iOS app to version 4.0, an update that includes a number of helpful new features designed to take advantage of iOS 8.

The biggest productivity booster is the addition of quick actions on notifications. Now, when you get a new message, you can choose to reply to it or archive it directly from your device’s notifications at the top of the screen or from the lock screen.

Gmail is also joining the iOS 8 share sheet, allowing you to quickly add documents and images from other apps to a Gmail message. Finally, Google added a new “attachment viewer” that lets you open file attachments in Gmail and then send them to any other app on your device.

Apple will be joining the Dow Jones Industrial Average taking wireless carrier AT&T’s spot on the famed stock market index, CNBC reports. The change will take place in just under two weeks at the end of trading on March 18th. The Dow is heavily viewed as being indicative of the overall stock market performance in the United States, and Apple’s rising stock price will soon be a significant factor to that number.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is currently made up of 30 major companies based in the United States including ExxonMobil, Microsoft, IBM, and Walt Disney.

The Omni Group this week released an update to its popular diagramming tool, OmniGraffle for the iPad, which brings a highly-requested feature -- support for the iPhone. OmniGraffle was originally released as a charting, wireframing and diagramming tool for the Mac and then made its way to the iPad. The latest 2.1 version is a universal app compatible with both the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

With this release, The Omni Group has redesigned the iOS app, sizing the elements and moving them around so users can conveniently access the tools on the iPhone's smaller screen. The user interface was created to be dynamic, with the layout changing based on the screen size of the iPhone model and its orientation.

Besides a handful of smaller improvements and bug fixes, the company also added editing points to...

London’s Financial Times today carries a profile of Jony Ive in which he discusses how the Mac changed his dislike of computers, why he is consumed by design and disinterested in sales, the difference between designing a phone (and its slim battery) and designing a smartwatch–and why Apple decided to take a low-key approach on even the top-end Edition watch.

The piece also contained an interesting (if possibly mistaken) estimate on Apple Watch pricing (update: Apple PR has now confirmed to us that the FT is indeed mistaken) …

Ive told the FT‘s Nick Foulkes that the original Macintosh changed his view of computers, and set the tone for his design philosophy It is a...

This week's all-new AppleInsider podcast is now available to download and subscribe in iTunes or SoundCloud, with detailed analysis of this week's news, including Editor Daniel Dilger's experience in Taiwan, we dissect the Samsung Galaxy S6 reveal, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and mobile payment news, plus final predictions for Apple's 'Spring Forward' event.

Almost 17,000 malware alerts surface every week, the Ponemon Institute recently found. Only 4 percent of alerts were investigated, and traditional antivirus products missed nearly 70 percent of malware in the first hour, researchers discovered in a recent Damballa study.
Rescanning led to identification of 66 percent of the malware in 24 hours and 72 percent after seven days. It took AV products more than six months to create signatures for 100 percent of the malware.

It’s hard to believe that we’re already almost four weeks into the life of Apple World Today. In that short period of time we’ve written a lot of posts, made a few mistakes, and have started settling into a routine. I thought it might be fun to let you all in on how things are going.

It helps a lot to get “Fireballed”

Our first few days of traffic were beyond our wildest dreams, thanks to a nice little two-line shout-out from John Gruber. You won’t believe how that helped out. Thanks, John! Um, could you mention us again? Other sites brought us traffic those first critical days, but nothing like what we saw coming from DF.

Traffic isn't where we'd like it to be

I had hoped that Apple World Today would be able to capture about 20% of the traffic that we were getting at TUAW, and those early readership numbers...

Apple, Google, Microsoft and Facebook have joined with 370 other companies to urge the US Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage across the country.

The companies have filed what’s known as an amicus brief, a way for parties not directly involved in a case to make an argument for or against a particular decision by the court. The brief argues that there is a sound business case for consistency across the country, explained counsel Susan Baker.

The competition for top talent crosses state and even national borders. State laws that prohibit same-sex marriage make it harder for businesses to recruit and retain talented employees. The patchwork of inconsistent state marriage laws makes it challenging and more costly for employers to administer benefits systems when some employees are unable to marry, and other employees’ marriages are not...

The Apple Watch is designed to make you healthier and help you communicate more easily, but those lofty goals can’t be attained without apps to back them up. Apple has its own apps in the works, like Workout and Activity for fitness-tracking, but the company needs popular iOS app developers to extend their services to Apple Watch. The company rolled out the WatchKit SDK in November to guide programmers and designers through the process, but I was curious: How do you make an elegant app without ever having seen the watch in person?

Apple has pushed back the expiration date of its iPhone 5 battery replacement program, which was originally scheduled to end on March 1, to provide owners of faulty equipment a full three years of component coverage.

Thursday March 5

It appears Oracle is bringing its adware wiles to OS X with the latest version of Java for Mac, as the installer comes bundled with the Ask.com toolbar, which is deceptively set to install itself by default.

Windows users are likely already familiar with the adware that’s usually bundled with Oracle’s Java software, but for Mac users that annoyance has been mostly avoided. Unfortunately, ZDNet reports that today Oracle has updated its Java installer to include the Ask toolbar on OS X.

The installation process automatically changes users’ browser homepage to the nearly useless Ask.com, which is populated by ads and mostly irrelevant results. The software also installs an Ask browser toolbar. Since these changes are made by default during Java installation, those who don’t want these “useful” changes made to their computers will need to manually deselect the option during Java installation.

The changes seem to affect both Safari and Google’s Chrome browser. It may also impact some other third-party browsers....

Apple reportedly granted developers from big-name companies monitored access to Apple Watch at its headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., in hopes of building out a solid initial app offering when the device launches in April.

jfruh writes One of the knocks against Silicon Valley giants as "job creators" is that the companies themselves often only hire high-end employees; support staff like security guards and janitors are contracted out to staffing agencies and receive lower pay and fewer benefits, even if they work on-site full time. That now seems to be changing, with Apple and Google putting security gaurds on their own payroll.

Aspiring screenwriters have enough on their plates without having to figure out how to make their word processors handle screenplay format, but with Fountain markup they don’t have to.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

When Apple launched its iPhone 5 battery replacement program last year, the company said that it would accept devices for replacement up to two years after purchase. Because the devices with the faulty batteries were sold between September 2012 and January 2013, two years from that date range would have given buyers until January 2015 (or March 1st, 2015, according to the page) to get their devices swapped.

However, as spotted by iPhone in Canada, Apple today updated the copy on the page to state that replacements would be accepted for an additional year. The page now says that users may return their defective units until three years after...

Anyone that relies on Microsoft Office is intimately aware that the current version (that’s Office 2011 for Mac) was released five years ago. That’s 36 dog years, but who’s counting?

If you’ve been pining for a new version of the venerable office suite (and haven’t yet switched to Google Drive for some reason) there’s hope. Microsoft posted an Office for Mac Preview today, which is...

Here are some of the best free apps, app updates and new apps that have landed in the App Store recently. Today's notable apps include the now free Temple Run:Oz, a big update for Omnigraffle and the new "pixel-packed, adrenaline-fueled" game Lastronaut. All app prices are USD and subject to change. Some deals may expire quickly, so grab them while you can.

Apps Now Free

Temple Run: Oz [iOS Universal; Now free, down from $1.99] The most thrilling running experience now comes to the yellow brick road!

Toca Train [iOS Universal; Now free, down from $2.99] All aboard? Time to get on Toca Train! Your kids are the train driver in this fun and friendly train simulator.

CNN today pushed out an update to its iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch application with a pair of features that some users will find significant: a Today widget for iOS 8’s Notification Center and a sports section. The widget is populated with the latest top stories from CNN, while the sports section sources its content from Bleacher Report, which has a dedicated App Store app (iPhone, iPad). CNN also says this version includes various bug fixes, like every app update that has come before it.

Today Disney Parks released a free iOS app called Show Your Disney Side, which transforms you into a 3D moving Disney character. Your Disney Side is the part of you that laughs a little bit louder, believes in magic, and never backs down from a pirate fight (even against Captain Hook!). This app was created to help you channel your inner Disney Side even when you’re nowhere near a Disney Park.

Turn yourself into a princess from Frozen, a X-Wing Pilot from Star Wars, Jafar from Aladdin, and several other Disney characters. You can even unlock new Haunted Mansion characters by visiting a Disney Park or sharing your Disney Side pics on social media.

A number of mobile executives who attended this week's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona are already projecting that the Apple Watch will dominate the smartwatch market when it launches in April, much as the iPad currently controls the tablet industry.

According to a report on Thursday, Apple's iAd division is looking to reinvigorate sales, and will soon allow third-party agencies to provide demographic targeting information to advertisers, including matching of phone numbers, emails and other data.

Harmonix on Thursday revealed that the fourth installment of Rock Band will launch this fall on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The news comes about five years after the last title in the franchise made its debut. Harmonix is celebrating the series' return by gifting fans Frank Turner's I Still Believe. It's an appropriate track for a series that has taken some time off, with its iconic lyric, Now who'd have thought that after all, something as simple as rock 'n' roll would save us all?

Earlier this week, a February blog post by mobile payments consultant Cherian Abraham captured the attention of the media and set off a flurry of articles about rampant fraud on Apple Pay. But despite headlines declaring that Apple Pay sees 60 times more fraud than magnetic stripe credit cards, the details are a bit more nuanced. It turns out that Apple Pay as a platform appears quite secure—it hasn’t yet seen any man-in-the-middle or other hacking attacks (that we know of) that could result in the loss of thousands of credit card numbers,...

A new report from TechCrunch notes that the upcoming Apple Watch has a port that Apple has yet to show off hidden in one of the two slots where the Watch’s straps connect to its case. The report brings up the possibility of using it to facilitate “smart straps” and other Apple Watch accessories, but 9to5Mac has learned from sources that the port, which is actually a Lightning port being used for testing, will not be included on the product shipping to customers.

The port is currently being used to connect to the Watch for development purposes, but TechCrunch speculated it could be used to bring “smart straps” to the device in the future:

Starting today, AppleCare will begin providing support service for Beats Music customers as well as businesses interested in accepting Apple Pay, according to sources. Support for the streaming music service previously went through a separate system from Apple’s other products and services. AppleCare staff has also been advised on helping businesses with accepting Apple Pay as the company pushes its new mobile payment service.Support for Beats products has slowly been integrated with Apple’s customer support channel for its products and services since Apple bought Beats Electronics and Beats Music for $3 billion last year. Most recently we reported that Apple would begin offering online chat support for Beats hardware. Apple...

Apple received the highest score for loyalty of any brand cited across all categories. What explains Apple’s unrivaled loyalty in China? Yes, the products are attractive. Yes, the price point is high enough that the iPhone is a status symbol that is more accessible than a diamond-studded watch or flashy sports car.

AltConf is a free, community-driven and supported event, held in downtown San Francisco alongside Apple’s WWDC. We’re currently planning the 2015 conference, and we’ve got some very exciting plans in the works that we’re hoping that we can announce very soon.

Mike and Judy do a tremendous job with AltConf. If you’re interested in speaking or wish to support the conference, be sure to get in touch with them.

Sources in Apple's supply chain are particularly bullish about iPhone sales to start 2015, leading investment firm Barclays Capital to say that its forecast of 54 million units for the current quarter is a "conservative" estimate.

Years before I became your friendly neighborhood tech blogger, I was a teacher. In 2015, my wife celebrated* her 20th year as a teacher. All this to say we know our pedagogy, which makes it difficult for us to find education apps that we're satisfied with. While Math Shake for iPad (free with in-app purchases) isn't long on looks, it's got it where it counts. Specifically, it presents word problems along with tools and strategies that help students discover the solution. It's quite well done.

Math Shake divides problems into six ability levels, from Beginner (6- to 7-year-olds) up to Genius (11- to 13-year olds). Beginner is available for free, while the other levels are available via in-app purchase at $1.99 each (or you can grab the lot for $2.99). Once you've chosen the appropriate level, decide if you're going to work on addition...

Google is rolling out updates to its Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps for the iPhone and iPad today bringing the ability to make a copy of a document and more.

In addition to the new “Make a copy” function for documents, spreadsheets, and presentations across all three apps, you’ll also now be able to copy links to your device’s clipboard. Sheets and Slides also receive a new “accessibility settings menu when VoiceOver is enabled.”

The updated apps also arrive with bug fixes and a few other minor enhancements.

We knew it was going to happen sooner or later, but for owners of Apple's Aperture app for Mac, that day was today. Apple sent out an email to owners of Aperture informing them of the impending demise of the app, along with instructions on how to get on the public beta of OS X 10.10.3 if Aperture fans want to take the new Photos app for a spin (screenshot below):

People hate him. Boy, wow, do they hate him. At first they loved him, and then they were confused by him, and then they were irritated by him, and now they straight-up loathe.

I’m definitely in the “loathe” camp. I’ve loathed him since way back in his days in Seattle. But it’s still an interesting, well written (and well presented on the web site) article. And, after reading it, I still loathe him.

Apple on Thursday notified customers who have previously purchased its Aperture photography software that the application will soon be removed from the Mac App Store, and invited those users to try the new Photos app as part of the OS X 10.10.3 public beta.

China should change its tune on new rules for purchases from American high-tech companies if it wants to do business with the U.S., President Obama has warned. China reportedly is planning to ask U.S. high-tech firms to hand over their encryption keys and install security backdoors to allow surveillance as a counterterrorism measure. It also will require high-tech companies to keep servers and user data within China's borders, supply law enforcement authorities with communications records, and censor terrorism-related Internet content.

Google just published a new update to Gmail for iOS. Gmail 4.0 has arrived in your App Store updates, bringing with it several new features designed to make life easier for those who use the app to handle multiple Gmail accounts... or even just a single Gmail account.

First, you'll find that notifications from Gmail let you either reply or archive a message with a single tap. That's a wonderful way to delete unimportant messages without even having to open the Gmail app.

Next, Google has added a share extension that allows Gmail users to send attachments from any app that supports the iOS 8 share sheet. You'll need to activate the extension by tapping "More" on the list of app icons that appears on the share sheet, then sliding the switch next to Gmail to the on position.

Finally, there's also a new attachment viewer for Gmail 4.0 that allows users to open...

Disney's new theme park-connected "Show Your Disney Side" app for iPhone lets users shoot a selfie and merge it with a famous character from one of the company's movies or attractions, such as Frozen, Star Tours, Pirates of the Caribbean, or the Haunted Mansion.

Apple won’t take the wraps off of its upcoming Beats-based music streaming service at its March 9 “Spring Forward” event, according to music industry sources briefed on the launch timeline. Instead, Apple currently plans to introduce the service, at least in beta form, at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in early June. The WWDC keynote likely takes place on Monday, June 8th, and that’s the event where the debut will occur. The new iTunes music streaming service is based on technology acquired from Beats Music, including curated playlists, cloud-based libraries, and offerings customized to the musical tastes of individual users. The service will be priced as high as $7.99 per month, which is less expensive than current $9.99 pricing for Beats...

Apple has began promoting the new Photos app to Aperture users in an email blast to past customers. Photos replaces iPhoto with new iCloud features built in, but the app does not carry over the same advanced editing features as Aperture.

For the last 12 months, Microsoft has focused on getting its flagship Office suite on screens where it's never been before—iPhones, iPads, and Android tablets. The Office for OS X apps were left behind, though. Microsoft released a new version of Outlook and an official OneNote client, but the core Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps were stuck back in 2010.

The contest is held in association with the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous festival, but Takhini Hot Pools owner Andrew Umbrich says he runs the contest the entire month of February to account for unpredictable temperatures.

He says -20C works for hair sculpting, but -30C is ideal.

“It just takes 10 minutes to a half hour to make a pretty incredible picture,” he says.

People wanting to buy an Apple Watch may be able to ask for a custom engraving, much as the company has allowed with products like the iPad and iPod before it, although the option may not be available in time for the product's launch.

Research firm Strategy Analytics released its latest report today forecasting global Apple Watch sales and smartwatch marketshare for 2015. The firm’s predictions put Apple’s anticipated global smartwatch marketshare at more than half with 54.8% reached in 2015. Notably, that forecasted percentage is versus all other smartwatches combined competing with the Apple Watch.

While the report predicts that Apple will take the overwhelming majority of smartwatch sales this year, it predicts a relatively conservative number of units shipped globally in 2015 at 15.4 million. That forecast still beats the collective “other” group with a 12.7 million units shipped globally predicted.

To be clear, the firm is predicting that the as-of-yet unreleased Apple Watch will outsell the existing smartwatch market in 2015…

Microsoft has released a preview of Office 2016 for Mac that includes several firsts for the platform, including a revamped ribbon and tighter consistency across platforms. The release will let users get their hands on Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and One Note before the final release comes out in the second half of 2015.

This preview demonstrates that Office 2016 for Mac is designed for the platform. It's Retina-ready, more secure than ever and features new levels of consistency. For example, you can opt to have keyboard shortcuts remain consistent with the Mac or Windows versions. That way commands can be consistent across all end points.

Word features new threaded comments and a new Styles Pane, which is a first for Office for the Mac. The ribbon has been redesigned as well for improved appearance and performance. Excel users can also expect consistency of shortcut keystrokes across the Mac and...

Google this morning has released a major update for Gmail on iOS. The update bumps the app to version 4.0 and packs a handful of new features. First off, Gmail on iOS now supports the ability to archive and reply to messages directly from a notification, a feature many have been requesting since iOS 8 launched.

The update also adds the ability to attach documents from third-party apps via the share sheet directly to an email to make it easier to move files on the go. That feature works the opposite way too, meaning that you can...

Off-the-grid messaging app FireChat is designed for chatting in congested spaces, like political protests in Hong Kong or music festivals in India. As the city of Austin gears up to host the music, film, and tech festival South by Southwest, FireChat is getting ready to introduce a new way to join a conversation with so-called “chat-tags.”

FireChat

Find out where to go and what to do with FireChat's new hashtagged rooms, launched just in time for South by Southwest.

Half a decade after Microsoft's last major update to Office for Mac, the venerable productivity suite returns anew with a Retina redesign, a modern codebase, and a host of new features -- and it's available today as a public preview. AppleInsider was given early access to the new apps and brings you a close-up view of Redmond's latest.

Before today, the latest versions of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel for OS X came with Office for Mac 2011, a suite of productivity apps which you can tell from the name included dated software without many modern features Mac users expect. Office for Mac 2011 was actually first released in October 2010. A lot has changed since then.

Back at that old website, we used to love Apple events because we always had the opportunity to do a liveblog. On Monday, March 9 starting at 10 AM PT/1 PM ET, you'll be able to join the AWT gang and everybody's favorite liveblogger -- Erica Sadun -- for the Spring Forward event.

We'll be trying out a new liveblogging service so bear with us if there are any hiccups along the way, but our early tests show that the liveblog should be similar to what you used to experience over at "that other place."

You can bookmark the liveblog page now, although there's no content yet, of course. We want to thank our friends at Securifi, makers of the Almond+ Router and home automation hub, for sponsoring the liveblog. Be sure to pick up an...

It's time to save some of your hard-earned money with our Daily Deals, featuring exclusive deals for AWT readers, hardware discounts and our own handpicked iOS and OS X sales. All prices are USD and subject to change. Please check prices before you purchase as some deals may expire quickly.

AWT's Daily Deals

WALTR [OS X; On sale for $20.07, down from $39.00] AppleWorld.Today is pleased to offer an exclusive deal on WALTR by Softorino. Instead of uploading the limited file formats that iPad/iPhone & iTunes is used to, Softorino engineered a technology that lets you upload and watch MKV, AVI, MP4 videos on your iOS device without having to convert the files before hand.

WALTR is available for US$29.95, but AWT readers can save 33% off the retail price when they use the promo...

The release of iOS 8.2 remains imminent, and could debut as soon as Apple's "Spring Forward" event next Monday, bringing a number of improvements to the iPhone's health app, along with the usual stability improvements and bug fixes.

Apple's upcoming 12.9-inch iPad -- commonly referred to as the "iPad Pro" -- will make use of an oxide LCD, most popularly known as Sharp's IGZO display technology, a new report from the company's supply chain claims.

Imgur, every Redditor’s favorite viral image site, recently released its second attempt at an iOS app after producing—and then pulling—its first shot at iOS several years ago. The new app is currently an iPhone-only affair that focuses on browsing the site’s image collection.

Noticeably absent are any tools to upload images to the site, at least for now.

Imgur for iPhone.

The new app doesn’t look anything like the original, which attempted to mimic the grid format of Imgur’s PC site—a format the Android app still holds to. Instead of a grid, you'll see a single image and swipe from right to left to view more. To read the comments you have to scroll down underneath the picture.

The 12.9-inch “iPad Pro” that was expected to make its first public appearance around April before being pushed back to Q2 has been postponed according to a Bloomberg report. The new release date is reportedly some time in September, right around the next-gen iPhone launch.

This delay is said to be the result of display panel supply problems.

The larger tablet is expected to include an A8X processor built by Apple and is far enough along in the development process that leaked images and specs have filtered out to the media.

The free SNL app brings thousands of sketches from Saturday Night Live’s 40-year history to your iPhone or iPad.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Apple's tagline for the event is "spring forward," a less-than-subtle reference to the Apple Watch and a reminder that holding a product event the day after Daylight Saving Time begins is cruel. Since this event is likely to be the springboard for an all-new product line, it's probably going to crowd out most other announcements, which makes this list shorter than it normally is. That said, the timing is right for a handful of other announcements—here's what we think will share the stage on Monday.

HBO is in talks with Apple to make Apple TV one of the launch partners for its highly anticipated streaming service when it debuts next month. HBO and streaming partner Major League Baseball Advanced Media are working to have the standalone service, called “HBO Now,” ready to launch in April in conjunction with the premiere of the fifth season of “Game of Thrones,” according to sources familiar with their plans.

When it launches, consumers will be able to subscribe to HBO Now directly from HBO for the first time, rather than through a cable, satellite or telco TV distributor such as Comcast or Verizon. The retail price is...

Ahead of likely Apple Watch and Apple Pay announcements on Monday during Apple’s ‘Spring forward’ event, Apple has spruced up the main Apple Pay site to further highlight the Watch’s compatibility with Apple Pay and clarify frequently asked questions about the service for merchants. Changes to the site include a dedicated page for finding out where to use Apple Pay, and a new FAQ support document to help merchants learn about Apple Pay and start accepting the mobile payment service.

When the Apple Watch hits the market in April, a lot more people will be suddenly able to use Apple Pay in stores than ever...

Europe’s top court has declared that ebooks are ‘services’ rather than books, and that European countries are not allowed to give them the same favorable tax treatment as paper books. The reasoning, such as it is, is that ebooks cannot be used without a physical device, and ebooks are a service provided to those devices.

Both France and Luxembourg have applied to ebooks the same reduced rate of VAT (sales tax) enjoyed by books made from crushed trees. The WSJ reports that the EU has ruled that this is illegal.

Since 2012, France has applied a 5.5% VAT rate and Luxembourg a 3% VAT rate on e-books, the same rate as for paper books. The European Court of Justice said both countries must apply their normal VAT rate, which for France is 20% and for Luxembourg is 17%.

Software Updates via MacUpdate

MacFamilyTree 7.3.4 - Create and explore...

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Yummy FTP 1.10.2 - FTP/SFTP/FTPS client...

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VueScan 9.5.08 - Scanner software with a...

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Iridient Developer 3.0.1 - Powerful imag...

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Air Video Server HD 2.1.0 - Stream video...

Air Video Server HD streams videos instantly from your computer on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Apple TV. No need to worry about converting or transferring files.
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Duplicate Annihilator 5.7.5 - Find and d...

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BusyContacts 1.0.2 - Fast, efficient con...

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Capture One Pro 8.2.0.82 - RAW workflow...

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Backblaze 4.0.0.872 - Online backup serv...

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Little Snitch 3.5.2 - Alerts you about o...

Little Snitch gives you control over your private outgoing data.
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It seems like this month has been pretty big for wrestling. First Wrestlemania, then 2K has announces that they're releasing WWE 2K for iOS. It's a simulation-based WWE game where you'll get to play with several WWE superstars such as John Cena, ... | Read more »

How the Apple Watch Could Change the Fac...

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Pie In The Sky: A Pizza Odyssey (Games)

Pie In The Sky: A Pizza Odyssey 1.0
Device: iOS Universal
Category: Games
Price: $2.99, Version: 1.0 (iTunes)
Description:
A game about delivering pizza. In space.
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Chosen Gives Hopeful Singers, Songwriter...

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Android's Popular OfficeSuite Now A...

Once only available for Android devices, OfficeSuite has finally landed on the app store. The Mobile Systems app lets you view, edit, create, and share Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents as well as convert them to/from PDFs. It's touted as being... | Read more »

Warhammer: Arcane Magic is Coming Soon,...

Turbo Tape Games has announced that they're joining forces with Games Workshop to bring the turn-based strategy board game, Warhammer: Arcane Magic, to life on the iOS.
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Fast & Furious: Legacy's Creati...

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N-Fusion and 505's Ember is Totally...

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These are All the Apple Watch Apps and G...

The Apple Watch is less than a month from hitting store shelves, and once you get your hands on it you're probably going to want some apps and games to install. Fear not! We've compiled a list of all the Apple Watch apps and games we've been able to... | Read more »

Appy to Have Known You - Lee Hamlet Look...

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Price Scanner via MacPrices.net

Adobe Brings Powerful Layout-Design Capabilit...

Adobe today announced the availability of Adobe Comp CC, a free iPad app that enables rapid creation of layout concepts for mobile, Web and print projects. With Comp CC, designers can rough out and... Read more

Apple offering refurbished 27-inch 5K iMacs f...

The Apple Store is offering Apple Certified Refurbished 27″ 3.5GHz 5K iMacs for $2119 including free shipping. Their price is $380 off the price of new models, and it’s the lowest price available for... Read more

16GB iPad mini on sale for $199, save $50

Walmart has 16GB iPad minis (1st generation) available for $199.99 on their online store, including free shipping. Their price is $50 off MSRP. Online orders only.
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The Apple Store has Apple Certified Refurbished 13″ 2.6GHz/128GB Retina MacBook Pros available for $979 including free shipping. Original MSRP for this model was $1299.
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Save up to $600 with Apple refurbished Mac Pr...

The Apple Store is offering Apple Certified Refurbished Mac Pros for up to $600 off the cost of new models. An Apple one-year warranty is included with each Mac Pro, and shipping is free. The... Read more

Samsung Galaxy S 6 and Galaxy S 6 edge U.S. P...

Samsung Electronics America, Inc. has announced the Galaxy S 6 and Galaxy S 6 edge will be available in the U.S. beginning April 10, with pre-orders being accepted now.
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13-inch 2.5GHz MacBook Pro (refurbished) avai...

The Apple Store has Apple Certified Refurbished 13″ 2.5GHz MacBook Pros available for $829, or $270 off the cost of new models. Apple’s one-year warranty is standard, and shipping is free:
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